Crossroads
by BrightEyes86
Summary: Bella was taken from her happy life in Forks when she was six years old. Ten years later, she returns. How will her former friends, specifically - Edward, react to the new and older Bella?
1. Chapter 1

I ran through the backyard, my bare feet soaked from the slick and damp grass. My wet tangled hair flew behind me as I ran forward and dropped onto the yellow slip and slide. I slid across the slip and slide in my pink two-piece swimsuit.

I reached the end, but before I could push myself up, I felt a body ram against me. I grunted and looked over my shoulder to see familiar reddish brown hair and green eyes peering at me.

"Edward!" I whined.

He flashed me his infamous crooked smile. "Sorry, Bella."

I rolled my eyes and lifted myself off of the drenched slip and slide. Edward followed and we both ran back to the other side of the slip and slide, waiting in line for our turn. Our school friends: Alice, Emmett, Jessica, Angela, Lauren, Mike, Tyler, Ben and Eric were all in the backyard of Cullen house for Edward's seventh birthday party. The parents sat around on the deck as we played.

It was a rare sunny day in Forks and we were all taking advantage. Carlisle, Edward's dad, and my dad, Charlie, were grilling hotdogs and hamburgers while the other adults were sitting on the chairs and drinking freshly made lemonade. My mom, Renee, was sitting on the first step of the deck, covering her face with her hands. She looked very sad and tired recently, but every time I asked her what was wrong, she smiled and changed the subject.

Alice told me it was probably her time of the month. Whatever that meant. Alice was always saying things I didn't quite understand.

We spent the rest of the day throwing water balloons at each other, playing tug-of-war, squirting water guns and eating. Hours passed by quickly and the sun was starting to set. We decided to play hide-n-seek before our parents would decide to drag us back to our own houses. There weren't many places to hide in the Cullens' backyard, but that didn't make it any less enjoyable.

It was Mike's turn to be the seeker. He covered his eyes with his hands and stood against the corner of the house, counting to 10. We all scattered along the yard and looked for a place to hide. I saw Alice crawl underneath the deck. Emmett jumped in an empty garbage can, which made me shudder.

The others hid and I was still searching for a hiding spot when Edward grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the deck. His fingers folded over my small hand and I folded my fingers over his slightly bigger hand.

We ran up the steps, past the parents and he slid the patio door open. I cocked an eyebrow at him and he shrugged. "I don't want to play anymore." We stepped inside the house and he slid the door shut behind us. "Come on. I want to show you something."

He led me up the stairs and into his bedroom. It was like a second bedroom to me. I'd spent countless nights sleeping in here. His walls were painted baby blue, and his twin sized bed was covered with a ninja turtles comforter. Miniature toy cars, a basket ball, G.I. Joes, legos and toy action figures cluttered his floor.

He flicked the light on with his free hand and dragged me to his bed.

"Sit," he commanded and I complied.

"What are we doing?" I asked him curiously.

"I have something for you," he replied, giddy.

I opened my mouth to protest but he placed a finger to my lips. "Don't even say it, Isabella Swan. I used the birthday money my grandparents sent me and I've been dying to buy this for you."

"Edward!" I screeched. "Why did you use your money on me? That's for you!"

"It's my money," he said matter-of-factly. "I can do what I want with it."

I grumbled as he turned away from me, opened his closet door and pulled out a small box.

"Bella?" A familiar voice called out from the hallway. The door knob jiggled and the door swung open. Esme peeked her head into the room and smiled at me. "Bella, your mom and dad asked me to get you. They're ready to leave."

Edwards face fell. "Mom, don't make Bella go home!" he pleaded desperately. "Can she spend the night, please?"

Esme sighed. "I would love for Bella to stay the night but her mommy and daddy want to take her home."

Edward pouted. "But it's my birthday!"

"Bella!" Charlie's voice shouted from the bottom of the stairs. "Time to go!"

I hopped off of the bed as Edward pushed past his mom and raced out of his bedroom. "Can Bella stay the night? Please!"

Esme and I looked at each other and giggled as we listened to Edward beg my dad to let me spent the night.

"I'm sorry, Edward," Charlie told him softly. "But Bella has to come home tonight. Maybe some other time."

I hugged Esme goodnight and slipped out of the door. Edward had his head lowered and his face had disappointment written all over it.

I sighed and touched his back. "I'll see you tomorrow, Edward."

He turned to face me. "That's not soon enough. Meet me at our spot tonight after your parents fall asleep."

We had secret meeting place when we wanted to be alone together and just talk. It was a dirt intersection where we'd ride our bikes during the day. It was pretty much abandoned. No one ever went there except for us. We spent many nights lying on the grass and staring up at the stars...whenever they were visible. We never ran out of things to talk about. When we were at our spot, we didn't have to whisper to prevent people from hearing us. It was just us.

We shared our secrets so our conversations were usually private, he knew everything about me and vice versa. There wasn't one secret I had hid from him. Our spot was the one place where we could just be ourselves without any interruptions.

I hugged Edward goodnight and skipped down the stairs to see Charlie waiting for me.

Once I reached the bottom step, I glanced upstairs and grinned at Edward. "Happy birthday, Edward!"

He smirked. "I'll see you later, Bella!"

When Charlie turned away, I saw Edward mouth the word, "tonight". I nodded my head as he beamed brightly.

Renee was waiting for us in the car. She was sitting on the passenger side, her head lowered and her fingers pinched the bridge of her nose. I crawled into the backseat and buckled my seatbelt silently. Charlie walked around the drivers side and slid in the car. Renee sighed loudly and I noticed that Charlie peeked at her from the corner of his eyes slyly. He reached his hand towards her but she jerked away from him and folded her arms across her chest while she leaned her head against the window. I frowned and Charlie's eyes snapped to the rearview mirror, glancing at me. His eyes looked so sad and helpless.

I dropped my gaze to my lap and my frown intensified. They weren't usually like this. Renee used to be happy and she laughed a lot. Now she was always quiet and her eyes were filled with tears whenever I looked at her. I wonder if a relative or an old friend of hers passed away recently. That could explain her behavior.

**

* * *

**

Later that night, I dressed to my pajamas and settled in my bed. Charlie tucked me in and kissed me softly on the forehead. Just like every night. But there was something different about tonight. He lingered longer than normal and his eyes glazed over. He looked so sad. Just like mommy.

After he left, I snuggled my stuffed tiger against my chest and waited peacefully for my parents to go into their bedroom and shut the door. I heard heavy footsteps walk downstairs, and a couple minutes later, distance voices were shouting. I sat straight up and tried focusing on what they were saying, but it was muffled. So I slid off of the bed, grasped Lily, my tiger. I had both my arms wrapped around Lily and I clung her to my body while I tip toed across my bedroom. I reached the door and pressed my ear against it.

I heard my name being mentioned and I picked up on a few other words but I couldn't understand what exactly they were fighting about so I reached my arm forward and twisted the door knob open. I stuck my head into the hallway and saw a soft glow coming from my parents' bedroom. The door was wide open and a lamp was on inside the room.

I heard the voices growing louder from below and it sounded as though they were in the kitchen. A faucet turned on and I quietly moved towards the edge of the staircase.

"I'm taking Bella out of here!" I heard Renee shout.

My eyes widened and I sat down on the top step of the stairs. _My mom wants me gone? They're going to make me leave? Why? What did I do wrong?_ My vision fogged up from the tears that threatened to spill from my eyes.

I gripped Lily tighter and my bottom lip quivered. _Whatever I did wrong, I'm sorry! I'll be better! I don't want to leave!_

I was going to stand up and ask why they didn't want me anymore, but I heard something drop to the floor and then it shattered. I jumped and the hair on my arms stood up.

"I can't live like this anymore!" Renee screamed, and I bolted straight up when I heard footsteps stomp towards the stairs. I dashed back into my room and closed the door behind me.

I panted wildly and slid my back down against the door until I was sitting on the floor. I brought my knees to my chest and wrapped my arms around my legs. Lily was beside me on the floor.

Light footsteps ran up the stairs. A heavier set of footsteps followed.

"I don't want to end up trapped in this stupid, boring town!" Renee shouted as she stormed past my bedroom. "I hate it! I can't stay here another minute!"

"Renee!" Charlie raced after my mother. "Don't do this! Just give it more time."

Their bedroom slammed shut and their voices were muffled again. Clearly still shouting at each other, though.

I wiped away my tears with the back of my hand and grabbed Lily. I didn't know what was happening but I needed to see someone. I needed Edward.

I opened my bedroom door and glanced across the hall, at the other bedroom. Shadows danced underneath the door crack and voices yelled at each other. I sniffed and trotted down the stairs, gripping the banister for support.

Once I reached the bottom step, I sprinted towards the door, yanked it open and fled the property. Our spot was approximately a ten minute walk. It was located directly between my house and the Cullen house. It took Edward and I each the same amount of time to get there, although we lived on opposite sides of town. I ran as fast as I could and the wind blew my hair behind me, still dressed in my pajamas and only wearing a pair of slippers.

My small legs pumped faster and I raced against the breeze that slammed into me. Gravel crunched beneath my feet and the moonlight provided enough light for me to see where I was running. I sharply turned into an alley and then ran past a group of trees. Not far from our spot.

I saw an unmoving body lying on his back on the grass, hands folded beneath his head. I ran towards the boy and skidded to an abrupt stop, I tripped and fell to my knees ungracefully.

Edward jolted straight up and rushed over to me, he grabbed my arm and pulled me to my feet. "Are you okay, Bella?"

I sniffed and swiped my hand across my cheek to wipe away my tears.

"Why are you crying?" he asked, panicked. "Are you hurt? Let me see."

He began inspecting me but I held my hand up. "I'm not hurt."

"Then why are you crying?"

I choked on a sob, turned away from him and sat down on the grass. I brought my knees to my chest and hugged myself once again. He sat beside me and draped an arm around my shoulder.

"What's wrong, Bella?"

I twisted my body towards him and buried my head against the crook of his neck. He wrapped both of his arms around me and pulled me closer to him.

"Tell me what happened. Was someone mean to you?" His voice grew hard, serious. "I'll pummel them!"

I shook my head. "I think my mom wants to get rid of me."

"What do you mean?" he asked slowly. "Tell me everything."

I lifted my arm and wrapped it around his neck as he squeezed me gently. My body shook and I felt his lips brush over my forehead as he planted a kiss there.

"I don't know," I mumbled. "I'm so confused. I don't want to talk about it."

"Bella." He leaned back slightly to look into my eyes. "I won't let anything happen to you. Ever. You're my best friend, and I will always be here for you." He wiped away a tear that fell from my eye. "I love you, Bella."

"I love you too, Edward."

He smiled at me and placed my head underneath his chin. "If your mom tries to make you leave, you can come and live with me. My parents will adopt you and we will be brother and sister!"

I chuckled and held onto him tighter. "I wish you were my real brother."

"Someday," he spoke in a hopeful tone. "Your mom will have another baby and so will mine and they will get married and we'll be related!"

"Or," I suggested. "_We_ could get married we get older."

I could practically hear him smile. "That would be better. Let's make a promise right now. You and me will get married after we finish school and move away from here."

I smiled. "We can get married the same day as Alice and Emmett, and it'll be a big double wedding."

"And," he added. "We can all buy a big house and live together and raise our children in the same house."

"Yeah," I agreed. "And our first kid will marry Alice and Emmett's first kid so we can all be related."

"Yeah," he said softly.

We sat in silence for a few minutes, hanging onto each other as if our lives depended on it.

"Oh!" Edward spoke excitedly.

I was startled and jumped. He unwrapped his arms around me, dug into his pocket and pulled out the small box that he held earlier. "Your present!"

He handed the box to me and I reluctantly accepted it.

"You didn't have to buy me a present, Edward. It's _your_ birthday."

"You're my other half." He smiled at me. "So it's practically your birthday too."

I smiled at his logic and opened the box to reveal a silver bracelet. I gasped and held it up. "Edward! It's beautiful!"

He smiled, pleased with himself. "It's a charm bracelet."

He took the bracelet from my hand and clasped it around my wrist. We both admired it for a few moments.

"Oh, I almost forgot! Your first charm is in the bottom of the box."

I looked back at the box and saw something glimmering at the bottom of the box. I picked it up and studied it underneath the moonlight. It was a silver heart.

"Look at the back," He whispered.

I flipped it over and there was something engraved on it. I squinted my eyes and tried to read it with the minimal light.

'Edward & Bella forever'.

I smiled and a happy tear trailed down my cheek. "Edward! It's perfect!"

He hooked the charm on the bracelet and I placed a quick kiss on his cheek.

"Hey, Bella," he spoke nervously.

I peered at him from the corner of my eyes. "Hmm?"

He swallowed and I raised an eyebrow. "Will you be my girlfriend?"

I blushed and smiled shyly. I'd never been interested in boys and I knew I was too young to have a boyfriend, but since Edward and I already agreed to get married when we'd grow up…why not? "Yes," I whispered.

He smiled widely and leaned his head down to mine and kissed my lips lightly.

We hugged and said goodnight because it was getting pretty late. It was probably close to midnight by now and we'd both get in big trouble if we got caught sneaking back inside our houses. I ran back to my house with a goofy smile etched on my face and a silver charm bracelet around my tiny wrist.

I tip toed up the walkway and slowly opened the front door. Loud voices filtered through the house and I realized that my parents were still fighting. I sauntered up stairs and crawled into my bed. The moment my head contacted with the pillow, my eyes closed and I drifted into a deep sleep.

**

* * *

**

I heard a thud and my eyes popped open. The light in my bedroom was on and it was still dark outside. I tried adjusted my eyes to the bright light and blinked a few times. A shadow passed in front of me and I sat up. Renee had an armful of my clothes and stuffed inside a suitcase. _No! They're really sending me away!_

"Mommy!" I cried. She froze and looked over at me. "Don't make me leave! I'll be good!"

Renee sighed and moved to sit next to me on the bed. "We have to go, baby."

I sniffed and rubbed my eyes. "We?"

"Yes, baby." She pushed my hair behind my ears. "We're going to live in Arizona with grandma."

I widened my eyes. "But why?! We can't! What about school and the house…and Edward!" I shook my head. "Mommy, I can't leave Edward!"

"I'm sorry honey, but we have to go."

Tears streamed down my face. "Can we bring Edward with us?"

She looked at me sadly and shook her head. "It's just you and me, Belle."

It took me a moment to comprehend. Just me and my mom? But wait…Charlie. "But…what about dad?"

"Daddy is staying here."

"No!" I screamed and jumped off the bed. I ran out of the bedroom, down the hallway and into the other bedroom. Charlie was sitting on the edge of the bed, his head in his hands and his shoulders were shaking.

"Daddy!"

His head shot up and his eyes were bloodshot. I gasped as I stared at the tears running down his face.

"Daddy, I don't wanna leave!"

He extended his arms out to me and I jumped on his lap. He cradled me against his chest and I sobbed loudly.

"I don't want you to leave, either," he whispered.

A door closed down the hall and I heard my moms voice. "Come on, Bella. We're leaving now."

I cried harder as Charlie stood up and carried me in his arms. He carried me downstairs and I saw Renee waiting by the door. Suitcases were piled up near the door. I glanced at the clock and noticed it was just after two in the morning.

Charlie sat me down on the couch and walked over to Renee. "Don't do this," he pleaded weakly. "We can work everything out. Just wait until I can save up more money and we'll-"

Renee shook her head forcefully. "I've waited long enough." She picked up the bags. "Come on, Bella."

I slid off the couch and walked over to my parents. Renee tried opening the door but Charlie slammed it shut.

She sighed and looked at him. "Just let me go, Charlie."

Charlie's face fell and Renee opened the door again. She didn't look back.

She packed our bags into the trunk, and when it was full, she placed the rest into the backseat of the car. I slid into the front passenger seat, tears rolled down my cheeks and I clutched my wrist. I ran my fingertips over the bracelet.

Renee slipped into the driver seat and placed Lily on my lap. I pressed my hand against the window as I stared with wide eyes at Charlie, who was leaning against the door and sobbing. My hand slid down along the window as Renee sped off. Forks blurred past us, and before I knew it, I read a sign that had 'Now Exiting Forks' written on it.


	2. Chapter 2

I took one last deep breath and attempted to calm myself down. _I can do this. I can do this. I can do this. _I chanted my new mantra over and over again.

It had been ten years since I'd stepped a foot inside Forks, and now, here I was. I hadn't seen anyone from this town except for Charlie since I was six years old. I hadn't been back for the summer or Christmas break. Instead, Charlie came to visit us. Well, me. I was certain Renee was the last person he wanted to be near after she walked out on him.

I could still remember that day down to the last detail. Not only was it my last night in Forks, it was my former best friend's birthday. His seventh birthday. I hadn't seen him since he was little a boy. I'd often let my mind wonder to what he was like now. What he looked like…what his current interests were. Did he still live in the same house? Was he still friends with everyone? Did he still sleep with his ninja turtles blanket? Were his walls still blue?

There was one way to find out. I just had to get out of the car and step through double doors calling out to me. I'd been parked in front of Forks High School for ten minutes now. No one else was here yet. I came early. I wanted to prepare myself by getting acquainted with the building. I knew I only had a matter of minutes until the students started to arrive.

I glanced at my reflection in the rearview mirror. Would they recognize me? They don't know I was back yet. Though, by the end of the day, I was sure the entire town would know. I made Charlie promise not to tell a soul, just the school administration. So far it seems he kept his promise. There haven't been any visitors welcoming me back when we arrived at the house yesterday after he picked me up from the airport.

I could do this. I closed my eyes and took another deep breath. _Come on, Bella. You know these people. Well, you used to. How different could they all be now?_

I opened my eyes and gripped the door handle. _I can do this._ _Just open the door and enter the building. _I was expected at the main office._ I can do this._

I stepped outside of the ancient truck and slammed the door closed. First step accomplished. Now I just had move across the lot and actually step inside the building. The bundle of nerves flapping around in my stomach only increased with each step towards my destination. _I can do this._

I glanced over my shoulder, at my truck. Maybe I couldn't do this. I could run back to my truck before anyone noticed me. I could race back to Charlie's house and tell him I changed my mind about living here again. I could escape to Phoenix. But then I'd be abandoning him, just like Renee did ten years ago. I couldn't do that to him. I was 16, almost 17 years old. I was a big girl. I could do this. It wasn't rocket science. I just had get inside and move from there.

_But what if they hate me? What if they're mad at me for leaving?_ They couldn't possibly blame me. I was just six years old! _That still doesn't mean they'll welcome me back with home arms. Or worse…what if they don't remember me? What if they forgot all about me?_

_Oh, stop it! You're psyching yourself out. Just get inside the damn building!_

My inner voice sure was snappy today.

_Shut up._

I rolled my eyes at my corniness and proceeded to trek towards the high school. _I can do this._

------

It didn't take too long for me to receive my schedule for the rest of the year. Fortunately, I arrived just two weeks after school started so it shouldn't take too long to catch up. It was better than starting in the middle or end of the school year.

I clutched my schedule in my hand and headed towards the hallway. I could see people walking past through the glass on the door. I gulped and my stomach fluttered. _I can do this._ I opened the office doors and stepped into the hallway. I was surrounded by a bunch of different voices talking all at once. People walked past, some of them glanced at me and probably wondered who I was.

Were any of these people my former friends? Had I already passed Edward? How different would he look now? I could only imagine him as a short seven year old boy with a toothless smile, green eyes and tousled bronze hair. He couldn't possibly be the same size anymore, and I was confident all of his teeth were probably intact now.

I kept my eyes on the piece of paper in my hand and searched for my first class. I only lifted my eyes up to glance at classroom numbers. I avoided all eye contact. I was nervous that someone would recognize me and I'd be expected to know who they are but then I'd freeze and be at a loss for words, and they'd stare at me like I was slow and tell everyone.

"Hey," a male voice called out behind me.

_Do I look back? Is he talking to me? What if he's not? Would I look stupid to glance over my shoulder? What if he is talking to me and I don't look? Would he think I'm rude and stuck up? Gah!_

"New girl," the voice said again.

_Okay._ I was almost certain he was talking to me now. Unless there was another new girl today who just happened to be walking beside me. I glanced sideways. Nope. No girls walking along beside me. I slowed my pace down and looked over my shoulder. My brown eyes met a pair of blue eyes.

"Hey." He smiled at me. I glanced up at his spiky blonde hair. Something about this guy seemed familiar. He couldn't be Edward. Not unless Edward took a few trips to a plastic surgeon.

"Hi," I replied in a soft voice.

He took that as an invite to invade my personal space and looked down at my schedule. "Need a tour guide?"

"Actually, could you point me in the direction of my first class?" I asked shyly.

He smiled before taking the paper from my hands. After a couple seconds, his eyes wide nearly popped out of their sockets. He darted his eyes to me and then back to the paper.

"Isabella Swan?!" He practically shouted. "Holy shit! Is it really you? You're really back?"

_And so it begins…_

I nodded weakly. Who was this guy?

"It's me," he said as if he could hear my thoughts. "Mike. Mike Newtown!"

An image of a small blonde haired boy popped into my head. "Mike! Oh my god!"

An old friend.

He threw his arms around me and I didn't even mind. Mike and I were good friends back in the day. He used to help me cut up worms for our own amusement. The strange things I did as I a child…

"How have you been?" he asked. "Did your mom come back with you? How long are you staying?"

I laughed as the questions spewed from his mouth. "I'm good. No, Renee didn't come back with me. She's still in Phoenix with her husband, Phil and my baby brother. I came back because I realized that if I didn't do it now, it'd never happen." That was true. If I had stayed in Phoenix for my junior year, I would have stayed for my senior year also. I kept asking myself what would happen if I ever came back…now I'd get to discover those answers. "I don't know how long I'm staying," I admitted. "At least for the rest of the year. That much is certain. If I don't really like it here, I'll probably go back to Phoenix my senior year."

He laughed. "You're going to hate it here. Guarantee it. But you'll love us."

I had an urge to ask him about Edward. About all of them. "So, is everyone still here? You know, the old gang?"

He nodded his head and my heart jumped in excitement. That meant that Edward was definitely still here. Butterflies danced in my tummy. Oh, God. Now I really was quite nervous. Would he accept me? What was he going to do when he'd see me? Did he remember asking me to be his girlfriend? Did he remember the charm bracelet, the one I never took off?

I was wearing it now. It never left my wrist. I rubbed it whenever I was in the mood to reminisce. Would he notice it? What would he think?

"We should get going," Mike said. "First bell is about to ring."

I smiled at him and followed him to my class. He turned us around, in the opposite direction of where I was walking, which meant I was going the wrong way. _Awesome, Bella! What if Mike hadn't shown up? I would've been lost and entered the classroom late and everyone would've stared at me!_

"Do you have this class too?" I asked.

He shook his head. "Nah. My class isn't far from where I found you."

Aww. He headed in the wrong direction for me. How sweet. Now what did he want? Guys weren't nice for no reason at all. They usually wanted to be compensated. _I'm keeping my eyes on you, Mike Newton._

"But," he continued, "we have English, biology and gym together."

Ugh. Gym. I was _forced_ to take it. At least I'd have someone to protect me from the balls. I saw Mike checking me out from the corner of his eye. Then again, maybe not. I may need protection from his.

We arrived at the classroom with a minute to spare. Thank you, Mikey! He handed me my schedule back and said a quick goodbye before racing off to his own classroom.

Half of the students were already seated and their eyes were glued on me. I heard a few murmurs. I could make out words like 'her' and 'girl' and 'new'.

Ah. To be the center of attention. I internally whimpered. Someone save me.

My eyes scanned over the students, looking for a bronzed haired boy. There wasn't one in sight. I sighed. But what if he dyed his hair? Or maybe it changed naturally?

It was funny that he was the only one I was really curious about seeing though I was friends with quite a few other people. But he _was_ my first boyfriend. Even if it only lasted a couple hours. Actually, technically, we didn't break up. Would that still make him my boyfriend? Or was there a time limit to how long you could go without communication before the relationship turned void and you were free? Or did relationships between little kids not even count? I wondered what he thought about all of this.

I walked up to the teacher and handed her the sheet of paper that needed to be signed by each teacher.

She smiled at me and told me to take a seat anywhere. By this point, I was sure the entire class was seated. I eyed a few empty seats and decided to go with the one in the back. The one next to a curly brown haired girl. I walked up the aisle, ignoring the eyes burning holes on my back. I was just a new girl. It was not like I was about to flip backwards and put on a little dance for everyone. _Avert your eyes, please. Nothing to see here._

I sat down and the brown haired girl pounced immediately. "Hi! I'm Jessica. What's your name?"

Jessica. I knew a Jessica. Was it the same girl? Maybe. Maybe not. Jessica _is_ a common name.

"Bella."

Her eyes widened and her mouth gaped open.

_I'm gonna bet that it's the same Jessica._

"Oh my god! Bella Swan?! No freaking way!"

The corner of one side of my lips lifted up. "Yes freaking way?"

She squealed and snapped her fingers at a blonde girl in front of her. "Lauren!"

I knew a Lauren too.

The blonde glanced back, her eyes shifted from Jessica to me, to back to Jessica. "Guess who she is?" Jessica jerked her head in my direction.

"Miley Cyrus's cousin?"

Jessica rolled her eyes. "Isabella freaking Swan."

Lauren's eyes snapped back to my face, along with everyone else in the room. Jessica was a tab bit loud and everyone could clearly hear her. Audible gasps and whispers were heard around the room. Damn. Was I like celebrity in this town? I wondered if anyone would ask for an autograph.

People started shooting questions at me but the teacher clapped loudly. "Eyes up front! You can socialize _after_ class."

Gah. At least I have forty minutes before I was to be devoured. Better prepare myself.

Half way through class, Jessica tapped my arm and handed me a piece of paper.

_When did you get back? - Jess  
_

I sighed and pulled my pen out.

_Yesterday._ I wrote back.

I handed her the paper and she scribbled something down. She handed it back after a minute.

_No one knew you were coming back! Have you seen anyone else yet? - Jess  
_

_Just Mike._ I shoved the paper back on her desk.

She looked a bit bitter when she read what I wrote. _Uh oh. Stay clear from Mike Newton unless I want to be ripped to shreds._ She wrote something and gave me the paper.

_Are you back for good? - Jess  
_

_For now._ I wrote.

After I handed the paper to her, the teacher snapped her eyes towards us. We stopped immediately.

-------

The bell rang and I sighed. I gathered my books together as quickly as possible, wanting to escape the hounds waiting to attack.

Jessica and Lauren followed me out of the room. The entire hall was crowded and people were slowing down to get a glimpse of me. Didn't they have something more important to do? Like scoot to their next class? _I swear I'm not going to start doing a strip tease in the middle of the hall. Move it, people._

"Angela!" Jessica shouted while standing right next to me.

Angela must gave been clear across the hall if she had to be so damn loud.

People in the hall made a small path and we wiggled through it. I followed Jessica as she hopped down the hall. "Angela!" She called out again.

A tall girl who looked vaguely familiar stopped walking and turned around to look at us. Jessica skipped over to her. I felt something weird and my eyes drifted to the left, near the lockers.

My heart skipped a beat.

There was a tall boy…no…there was a tall _man_ leaning against a locker with untamable bronze hair and bright green eyes. But he wasn't looking at me. He was talking to a small gothic looking girl with short spikey black hair.

"Bella Swan!" I heard Jessica screech.

The bronze haired man shifted his eyes to Jessica, seeming to be interested in what she was saying.

"Bella Swan is back!" She said and pointed directly at me.

I blushed and lowered my head.

When I looked back up, a pair of intense green eyes were locked on me. I swallowed and stared straight back. His lips parted and he didn't even blink. Neither did I.

I suddenly felt a tug on my arm and I was being led away, in the opposite direction of where he was standing.

"Edward," I whispered to myself. That was definitely Edward.

Why didn't he come over to me? Why didn't he say hi? Was he just as stunned as I was? He certainly was not a little boy anymore. He had grown up quite a bit. And he was rather attractive. _Attractive? Who am I kidding? He's gorgeous!_

"Bella." Jessica snapped me out of my trance. "You remember Angela, right?"

I looked at the tall skinny girl in front of me and nodded. I was standing in a different hallway with them, but my mind was back in the hallway where I had just seen the only boy who ever asked me to be his girlfriend. I hoped to him again today. I hoped he was in some of my classes. And most importantly, I hoped he actually would talk to me.


End file.
